


Imperfect Perfection

by Skara_Brae



Category: Suits (TV)
Genre: Alpha!Harvey, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe, Bonding, Dubious Consent, Knotting, M/M, Omega Verse, Omega!Mike
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-22
Updated: 2013-04-13
Packaged: 2017-12-03 05:23:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/694624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skara_Brae/pseuds/Skara_Brae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Omegaverse.</p><p>Mike Ross has never been comfortable with being an Omega. When he is called into an interview with Harvey Specter, Alpha, he is forced to re-evaluate all of his preconceptions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Dipping my toe into the Omegaverse. All comments welcome!

“I heard about what went on in court today.”

Harvey Specter looked up from his desk to see Jessica Pearson standing in the doorway.

“So you heard about how awesome I was?”

Jessica raised her eyebrows. “I heard there was nearly a brawl.”

Harvey shrugged. “There was a lot of money involved. Emotions generally run high.”

Jessica walked into the room and sat in one of the chairs facing his desk. “Plaintiffs’ emotions generally run high. You were nearly assaulted by one of the other lawyers, and, if my information is correct, a court bailiff.”

“Robinson is an ass. And that bailiff--”

“Harvey…” Jessica sighed. “This can’t go on. You have to do something.”

Harvey tensed. “I am not going back on the suppressants. You saw what they did to me. I won’t live like that—“

“Nobody is asking you to go back on the suppressants. Believe me; I lived through those months too.” Jessica paused, looking at the tension in her newest senior partner’s eyes. “I was thinking of something a bit more… low-fi.”

“Low-Fi?”

Jessica produced a piece of paper from the portfolio she was carrying and dropped it on to his desk. Harvey picked up and glanced at it.

“The Omega Institute? Oh, hell, no.”

“Harvey—“

“You want me to…” The word seemed to stick in his throat. “Bond with someone? A total stranger? That’s your idea of a solution to this?”

“Do you have any other ideas?” Jessica looked exasperated.

“I can find my own sex partners, thank you.”

Jessica rolled her eyes. “Yes, you can pick up cocktail waitresses and flight attendants with the best of them. But they don’t seem to be helping your problem, do they?”

He was unable to contradict her.

“Harvey, this is unacceptable. You’re leaking pheromones all over the place. Clients have remarked on it when they come to this floor. Ray has to air out the car before he takes someone else out. Now you are causing brawls in open court. You need to do something.”

Harvey sighed, and picked up the paper. 

“It’s more than that, and you know it,” Jessica went on. “You’re pulling away from everyone. Burying yourself in work - your billables are approaching Louis’s, did you know that? We are worried about you.”

“We?”

“Donna and I.”

Harvey looked at his secretary/traitor through the glass of his office walls. She turned to him and shrugged apologetically.

He hit the intercom button on his desk. “Stop listening.”

Donna turned back to her work, whatever it was.

Jessica stood. “You are on leave until you get yourself sorted out. I’ve had Donna arrange for some interviews for you this Thursday.”

Harvey wanted to protest, but he knew it was pointless. That scene in court today had rattled him as well. He might as well give in to this ridiculous process. Maybe once none of OI’s finest was up the task, they could talk about other options, though he had no idea what those options were.

“Fine.”

Jessica’s eyes softened. “This could be a good thing, Harvey.”

“Yeah, right.”

***

Mike had just finished describing his near escape at the testing center to Trevor.

“I need to get my shit together. You know, do something—“

He was interrupted when his phone rang. He pulled it out and glanced at the number, hoping that it would not be something about Gram.

He rolled his eyes when he saw the number. “Great,” he muttered, “Just what I need today.”

His thumb hovered over the ignore button, but he shook his head. If he kept ducking their calls, they would just send someone to find him.

“Mike Ross,” he said, putting the phone to his ear.

“Hi, Mr. Ross!” An entirely too-cheerful voice chirped in his ear. “This is Sandy from The Omega Institute calling. We have an interview we would like you to attend on Thursday—“

“That’s not good for me.” Mike cut her off abruptly.

There was a pause, and a sigh. “Mr. Ross, you have failed to make your last 3 interviews. I am afraid that if you do not make this one, you will need to come in and discuss terminating your benefits.

“What does that mean?”

“You would need to start making alternate arrangements for your grandmother’s care.”

The bottom dropped out of Mike’s stomach. “What?”

“I am showing that when you registered with the Institute, we were happy to arrange for your grandmother to be placed in an affiliated care home for a discounted rate. If you do not attend this interview, your standing with the Institute will no longer be current, so that benefit will no longer apply to you.”

Mike couldn’t speak. The silence stretched out.

“Mr. Ross? If you want to keep her in the same home, I am sure they could help you with a payment arrangement… Mr. Ross?”

“Fine.” Mike spit out. “I’ll go to your…interview.” He held back the profanity. Barely.

“Great!” Sandy actually sounded relieved. “I am sure we can make the arrangements convenient for you. Would the morning or afternoon be better?”

“Afternoon.”

“Would two o’clock work for you? If not, we could push it back to four, or four thirty?”

Mike pressed the heel of his hand into his forehead, and squeezed his eyes shut. “Two’s fine.”

“Great. I’ll put you in for two o’clock. You will be meeting with a Harvey Specter in Suite 2005 at the Chilton Hotel. Do you need directions?”

“I know where the Chilton is.”

“Okay, great! I’ll text you a reminder the day before. Have a great day.”

Mike flung the phone into the couch, nearly missing Trevor. 

“Whoa, dude. Couch abuse…or phone abuse…or both. Heh.” Trevor was even more stoned than usual. “What’s up, man?”

“Fucking Omega Institute.”

“Man, I always forget you are one of those freaks.”

Mike rolled his eyes at him. Mike had worked very hard to suppress his Omega tendencies. To the rest of the world, he looked normal, but generally Alphas could tell. Sometimes, he’d be in a bar or a coffee shop minding his own business and feel someone’s eyes on him. Mike would find someone watching him with those all too familiar glazed eyes. Or sometimes he’d be minding his own business and catch the scent of something absolutely delicious, and start looking around before he realized what it was. Both situations called for a hasty retreat. And Friday he had to walk into the lion’s den. Walk into a room with an Alpha looking to bond. How was he going to get out of this one?

The door opened and Jenny walked in.

“What are you doing here?” Trevor asked. “You said you were going to stay at your place tonight.”

“Hi Sweetie. What a pleasant surprise. I am so glad you stopped by.” Jenny mocked.

“Sorry,” Trevor said. “It's just that Mike’s kind of in the middle of a crisis.”

“Crisis?” Jenny swung her gaze toward him. He was always the second person she noticed in the room. Normally that would be cause for a bitter pang in his chest, but he was too distracted tonight. “Mike, what’s wrong?” Her voice was so full of genuine concern; it was hard to fault her for it.

“The Omega Institute wants me to go to an interview on Thursday.”

“What does that mean?” Jenny asked. Jenny, like Trevor, was a Beta.

“They set him up with an Alpha.” Trevor answered her. “Who wants to jumps his bones. Bom chicka wah wah.”

“Jesus,” Mike uttered. “It’s just an meeting.”

“I don’t know,” Jenny said, “Bonding always sounds so romantic to me.”

Mike scoffed. “It’s not romantic. That’s just PR. It’s more like some kind of legalized slavery. You get bonded to an Alpha, and you have to do whatever they say for the rest of your life. Bullshit” He slammed the glass down on the table. “Shit.”

Jenny was immediately apologetic. “I’m sorry, Mike. I didn’t mean it that way—“

“It’s okay. I just have to figure out a way to bail.”

“Don’t show up.” Trevor said. “What are they going to do?”

“Kick my grandmother out of her home.” Mike said bitterly.

“What?!” Jenny was outraged on his behalf.

“I only got her into this place because they got me a deal. I don’t show up, deal’s off and I have to start paying the full amount each month.”

“Oh god, Mike, that’s awful. We’ll figure something out.”

Mike just wished he could believe her.


	2. Chapter 2

Harvey arrived at the Chilton Hotel on Thursday morning with a huge feeling of dread. This was going to be a disaster. He knew it.

Donna was already there, setting up the anteroom. She handed him a coffee and herded him into the room where the interviews would take place. “I also have a bedroom suite reserved upstairs, in case anyone… clicks.” She gave him a wink.

He suppressed a groan.

The first two interviews bore out his feeling on foreboding.

The first, a curvy blond in a short skirt and low cut blouse, leaned over the desk after shaking his hand. “Oh you poor thing,” she purred. “I can tell you are… suffering.”

Harvey raised his eyebrows. Normally Omegas didn’t come on quite so strong. On paper, she had looked pretty good. Educated, ambitious. She’d clearly be an asset to his career. But with her sitting across from him, even in his current state, Harvey could not have been less interested.

The second was an unqualified “No,” right from the start. She was barely eighteen, giggly and giddy. When pressed, admitted she only took the interview for a chance to come into the city.

“I’ve never been here before,” she gushed. “I live in New Jersey. I have no idea where to have lunch.”

Somehow that candid admission cleared the air, and Harvey found himself chatting with her for the remaining time. He even had Donna call in a favor to get her a reservation at one of those ridiculous bistros in mid-town. She gave him a hug as she left. She wrinkled her nose a bit, and said, “Yeah, I hope you find someone soon!” 

The third was a man, and Harvey admitted to himself, probably someone he wouldn’t have minded picking up at a bar somewhere, if bonding wasn’t on the table. He had gorgeous black hair and dark blue eyes, and a hint of a five o’clock shadow even though it was only eleven. 

The guy was well spoken too, and slightly self-deprecating. He admitted, with a sheepish smile, that he already had an established career (Accountant. Boring, but what could you do?) and made it clear he wasn’t looking for a “sugar daddy.” Still, looking him over, Harvey didn’t feel any kind of pull. This whole enterprise was doomed, just as he’d suspected.

He’d walked the guy out, and Donna told him they had a break. She raised her eyebrows at him. “How’s it going?”

Harvey shook his head. “How many more?”

Donna checked a schedule. “Just one, then you get a break for lunch.” She smirked at him. “Five more in the afternoon. Apparently, you are quite a catch.”

He groaned.

***  
Mike stared at himself in the Chilton’s bathroom mirror. He had about 5 minutes before his interview with the Alpha.

After sulking about the whole thing for a day, then scouring the internet, Mike had come up with a plan. He had paid an exorbitant amount of money to have a box of odor neutralizing products Fed-Ex’d to him. The body wash and spray would bring his natural scent down to that of a beta, and hopefully allow him to get through the interview without any “spark” that the Alpha was looking for.

He had showered thoroughly beforehand, sprayed himself down and then caught a cab to the hotel, not wanting to risk sweating off any of the expensive spray on his bike. Now he had to just go upstairs bullshit this Alpha for ten or fifteen minutes, then get the hell out of Dodge. He could do this.

He uncapped a small tube of scent neutralizing balm and delicately dabbed a bit under his nose. The alpha would be effectively shielded from his scent by the spray. Now he had to make sure he wasn’t distracted by the Alpha. He squinted at his upper lip the mirror. He needed to make sure it wasn’t shiny or obvious. He didn’t want to get caught. He gave himself one last look, sighed, and headed down the hall.

There was a pretty redhead in a skirt suit waiting for him in the anteroom. “Mike Ross?” she asked, looking unimpressed. “Are you aware you’re 5 minutes late?”

Mike gave her his best fake smile. “Are you going to call the cops?”

She raised her eyebrows at him for a moment, before cracking a smile. “You can go in.”

He swallowed hard.

When he entered the room, a man was already walking toward the door. He was a good looking guy, about 10 years older than Mike, with brown hair and eyes. Nice lips too, Mike noted absently.

“Harvey Specter,” the man said, extending his arm. His grip was firm, confident. “Please sit down.” He gestured to the chair in front of the desk.

Mike snorted as he took his seat.

“What?” Harvey asked.

Mike shook his head. “Nothing. Just…” he gestured to the desk between them. “Just this set-up.”

Harvey looked around, a bit puzzled.

“You sitting there, behind that desk like this is some kind of job interview. I mean, it’s hardly conducive to…” Mike trailed off. He cleared his throat. “Anyway…”

Harvey actually seemed to consider what he said. “I guess you’re right, but, as I am sure you can tell, I hardly have time for any meaningless overtures. Plus sitting too close might be…uncomfortable.”

Mike was confused, but remembered his goal was to get out of there quickly. “Whatever, dude.”

Harvey’s eyebrows drew together. “Don’t call me ‘dude.’”

“Sorry.”

There was a long pause, and the Harvey cleared his throat. “So, are you from New York?”

After a few moments of perfunctorily answering the questions that Harvey was asking him, Mike felt his heart sink for an entirely unexpected reason. He shouldn’t have been worried. There was no reason on earth that this guy would be interested in him. Mike was a college dropout (it still stung too much to admit he’d been kicked out) with a crappy job and no other interests. There was no way this gorgeous man in front of him could possibly be interested.

After a few moments, Harvey fell silent and they both stared at each other. There really didn’t seem to be anything else to say.

Mike knew he should probably be grateful and just get out, but for some reason he felt compelled to ask, “So. You’re a lawyer?”

Harvey looked up from the file he was absently flipping through, “Yes.”

“What kind? Criminal? M&A? I’d say you were a prosecutor but that suit is too nice for you to work for the city.”

Harvey smiled at that. “I used to work for the DA’s office, but right now I do mainly corporate law. A little bit of everything. I’m what they call a closer.”

“So you fix problems. Sounds interesting”

“It can be.” Harvey smiled. “It can be pretty boring too, at times. Like when you have to spend hours arguing about the legal ramifications of stock option backdating.”

“Hope you didn’t forget about Sarbanes-Oxley.”

Harvey’s eyebrows almost rose into his hairline, but he recovered quickly. “The statute of limitations render Sarbanes-Oxley moot post-2007.”

“Well, not if you can find actions to cover up the violation as established in the Sixth Circuit May 2008.”

Harvey was openly gawking at him now. “How the hell did you know that?”

Mike felt himself flush. “I, uh, I like to read.” 

“You like to read?”

Mike shrugged.

Harvey stared at him for another moment, the got to his feet and walked around the desk. “Okay, I’ll be letting you know…Mike.”

He was being dismissed. Mike wondered why this rejection stung so much when it was all he wanted just a half hour ago. He dragged himself to his feet and walked with Harvey to the door. Harvey held out his hand for a final shake and then…

Suddenly Mike found himself against the heavy wooden door frame, with Harvey’s forearm braced across his chest.

“What the heck, man?” Mike sputtered.

Harvey swiped his thumb over Mike’s upper lip, smearing off the odor neutralizer. “What the hell is this?” he snarled.

Mike couldn’t answer. With the odor neutralizer gone, the man’s scent was assaulting his senses. It was overwhelming. Oh god, this man smelled … delicious. Mike half slumped into Harvey, unable to resist pressing his nose up against the other man’s neck.

Harvey already had one hand pulling up the back of Mike’s tee shirt. “Christ, you’re covered in this stuff, aren’t you? No wonder I couldn’t smell you…What the hell, kid? Why’d you even come here if you weren’t interested?”

Mike couldn’t get any words out. It was all over now. He was exposed. Harvey would report him to the OI, and Grammy would get kicked out of her home. It was all his fault and worse, Mike could not even bring himself to care. He should be pleading, but it was all he could do was cling to this man like a life raft. He was so, so screwed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, thank you so much to all who commented and left kudos! I am overwhelmed by the response to this story. It is truly inspiring!
> 
> Second, a warning: Chapter 3 contains a sex scene involving two people basically drunk off of pheromones. Omega!verses are generally ripe with consent issues, so I don't think the following will be too out of line with the general expectations, but better to be safe than sorry.
> 
> Thank you all again for reading!

Harvey Specter was furious. This kid had annoyed him from the moment that he walked through the door wearing a threadbare tee shirt and jeans. Clearly he didn’t give a shit what Harvey thought of him. Harvey was not thrilled by this whole situation either, but had still worn one of his best suits. Appearances still mattered, even if you were desperate.

Still, the kid was the first interview he had had all day that didn’t mention the fact that he was gushing out pheromones like the Deepwater Horizon. He had actually seemed confused when Harvey mentioned the urgency of the situation. Even stranger, this Omega didn’t smell… at all. It didn’t make sense.

Harvey had been willing to shake it off, and dismiss the entire interview. A waste of time, just like everyone else. The kid was unexceptional, despite the perfect SATs scores. Then, out of nowhere, Mike Ross, college dropout, had come up with a Sarbanes–Oxley reference; a rather obscure fact from a piece of legislation from 2002. It was an impressive bit of knowledge, even if you were a lawyer. It didn’t add up, and this annoyed Harvey. He was used to being able to read people.

Then, the kid had blushed at something, and Harvey had seen the tacky residue on his philtrum. This Omega had smeared odor neutralizer on before the interview. Why? What was he trying to hide?

After Harvey had wiped it off, the Omega’s eyes had rolled back into his head. It was a common danger of wearing the stuff. The sudden influx of scent on an Omega’s sensitive system could cause them to zone. Mike had instantly crowded into Harvey’s space and pressed his nose against his neck, incapable of answering Harvey’s entirely reasonable questions.

Harvey pulled back. One look at the kid’s face told him that he wasn’t going to get any answers right away. Mike’s pupils were blown, gaze unsteady. Harvey wondered what kind of crap the kid had spread all over himself. What the hell had he been thinking? 

He wrapped one strong arm around Mike’s waist and guided him out of the room. Once in the anteroom, Donna’s eyes widened comically at the sight of him with his arm around Mike. 

“Donna – we’re going upstairs. I’ll give you a call in 30 minutes to let you know what to do with the rest of them.”

Donna nodded silently, apparently at a loss for words. If Harvey was not so distracted by the Omega at his side, he would have enjoyed the look of shock on his normally unflappable assistant’s face. He towed Mike out of the room, down the hall, and, after a moment, into the elevator. The kid still didn’t seem to be aware of what was going on. His face was still pressed firmly into Harvey’s neck.

They went up five floors and Harvey guided Mike down the hall as he pulled the room key out of his pocket. Once in the reserved suite, he headed right for the bathroom. He opened the door to the glass encased shower and turned on the water – cold – and then, without ceremony, pushed the still fully clothed Omega under the spray.

That seemed to wake Mike up all right. He shrieked instantly and tried to push his way out of the shower stall. “What the—“

“Stay there,” Harvey ordered, pressing a firm hand against Mike’s chest, keeping him under the spray. “Until you get the rest of that crap off of you.”

Mike glared at him defiantly, water dripping down his face. He then grasped at the handle for the hot water but Harvey slapped his hand away. He was already soaked through. The tee shirt was clinging nicely to his trim upper body, and his eyes were wide. Mike wrapped his arms around himself.

Harvey waited another moment for the water to fully wash away any remaining supressant, and then begrudgingly, reached in and turned on the hot water. As he leaned in to the shower stall, the scent hit him. He inhaled deeply before he could stop himself. This Omega smelled divine; better than anyone else he had ever met. Saliva pooled suddenly in his mouth. His last conscious thought was that if Mike had walked into the interview smelling like this, they probably would not have made it out of the room.

Without thinking, he stripped off his suit jacket and vest and kicked off his shoes. Mike watched him, eyes wide. “What are you—“

Harvey stepped into the shower and pressed the wet Omega back against the wall. He pressed his nose into Mike’s throat and inhaled deeply. There was a muffled groan from Mike as he was pressed back against the tiles. Harvey slipped his hands under the Omega’s shirt, reveling in the sensation of his warm skin.

The water was now warm. Harvey pulled Mike to stand directly under the spray and pulled up his tee shirt. “Off” he growled, and Mike obediently raised his arms and allowed Harvey to pull it over his head.

Mike groaned, letting his head fall back, exposing his neck. It was probably an unconscious gesture, but it spurred something primal in Harvey all the same. He wanted to mark that pale skin. He pressed his lips to that sweet neck, imagining tearing into Mike’s sweet skin with his teeth, rending that flesh and leaving a permanent mark of his possession there…

With effort, he pulled back. He took in the kid’s slender frame, soaked through and he ran his hands over Mike’s chest, revealing in the feeling of the skin trembling underneath him. The kid’s head was still back, his eyes squeezed closed. Harvey’s finger found a nipple and pinched it into hardness, and ducked his head to sooth the sensitive flesh with his tongue.

Mike jerked against him. Harvey raised his head and pressed his lips against Mike’s jaw. Mike turned and caught his lips in a kiss that quickly turned into a messy battle of tongues and teeth. 

Harvey’s hands pulled at the buttons on Mike’s sodden jeans and managed to push them towards his knees, taking a moment to grope his ass as well.

“This is crazy,” Mike muttered. “I can’t…I don’t want…”

“Then stop me.” Harvey answered. “Tell me to go. Tell me to get out. Otherwise, I am going to get down on my knees and suck you off right here.”

Mike’s only response was a throaty whimper.

Harvey sank to his knees, headless of the suit pants he was still wearing, and ripped off his shirt and tie. Then he attacked what was left of Mike’s clothes. The jeans were pulled down to his ankles and his underwear soon followed. Mike’s cock was long and slender, just like him. It was curved slightly with a deliciously pouty head that made Harvey’s mouth water. Harvey watched it thicken under his gaze. 

He leaned forward and lapped at it. Mike jerked at the contact and Harvey took a firm hold of his hips. Oh yes, he tasted as good as he smelled.

“Oh, fuck,” Mike was whispering above him. “Fuck, oh fuck.”

Harvey wrapped his lips around the head of Mike’s cock and gave a gentle suck. Mike reacted as though he had been hit with an electrical prod. He tired to spread his legs further, but the denim caught around his ankles would not allow him to. 

Harvey took a moment to free Mike from the rest of his clothes. The stupid sneakers went flying across the bathroom. Then Mike was bracing his hands on Harvey’s shoulders as he stepped out of the soaking jeans and underwear. He was left wearing only his socks, but Harvey has lost his patience. 

He ran his hands over the Omega’s muscular thighs, kneading in deeply. Mike was now engorged and flush against his stomach. Harvey kissed his way from the base to that pouty tip, open-mouthed kisses, licking and sucking. Above him, Mike was trying to speak but was only pushing out meaningless, desperate sounds. Then, Harvey wrapped his lips around the head and slid all the way down, taking him as far as into his throat as he could. Mike wailed. Harvey kept his rhythm regular, hands still rubbing at Mike’s thighs, and in no time at all Mike was crying out and coming down his throat. Harvey swallowed greedily. Delicious.

When he finally pulled back, Mike was swaying dangerously, knees almost buckling. Harvey climbed to his feet, and frantically stripped off his own slacks and underwear, kicking them out of the shower before taking the younger man in his arms. He ground himself against Mike’s abdomen frantically.

“Gorgeous,” he groaned into Mike’s ear. “The most gorgeous thing I have ever seen…”

It only took five or six abortive thrusts before he was coming on the Omega’s stomach in messy spurts. Mike was seemingly insensible, pinned between the shower wall and Harvey’s body.

“Oh god,” he muttered into Harvey’s shoulder. “Oh god.” His arms were wrapped around Harvey’s neck, and Harvey couldn’t remember when they had got there.

Harvey wrapped an arm around Mike’s waist and guided him out of the shower, remembering only belatedly to turn the water off. He dried Mike off with one of the fluffy white towels the hotel provided, taking care to dry his hair. They were both still wearing their socks, and he hastily toed his off as he helped Mike toward the bed. Mike fell into the bed like a toppled tree, and Harvey pulled off Mike’s socks, and then carefully tucked the sheets around him. Mike was already out, drooling into the pillow. It only took a moment for Harvey to climb in beside him and follow him into sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Mike stirred, gradually fighting his way back to consciousness. He blinked his eyes open and found himself staring at a ceiling that was not his own. What the hell…

It all came rushing back to him. The interview. God, he had been caught, and then, to his complete mortification, he had zoned out in front of Harvey Specter, lawyer extraordinaire. Harvey had brought him upstairs and thrown him in the shower to wash the neutralizer off, and then…

He pushed his head back into the pillow and closed his eyes. Shit. He was so screwed.

He glanced nervously to his side and found Harvey stretched out next to him on his stomach, watching him contemplatively. 

That was unnerving. Mike was suddenly conscious of the fact that he was naked and only covered by the sheet. He felt himself flush as he muttered, “Hey.”

Harvey continued to regard him silently.

Mike racked his brain for something to say. He had had some awkward morning-after encounters in his life, but this topped them all. Of course, it wasn’t even morning. The orange glow of sunset was still seeping in through the window curtains, so it couldn’t be any later than six.

“What…” Mike began and then trailed off. He had no idea what to say. Finally he settled on, “Are my clothes still in the bathroom?” He pushed himself up on his side, but didn’t move to get out of the bed.

Harvey waited another long moment before answering him. “No, I sent them out to be cleaned and dried.”

Mike blinked. “What? All of them?”

“Not like you were wearing much. But yes. Mine too, though I am pretty sure that suit is ruined.” His tone seemed to suggest that he considered this Mike’s fault.

Great. So he was trapped naked in a hotel room with a naked Alpha. Mike felt his stomach start to twist.

“Relax.” Harvey’s voice cut through his rising panic. “Nothing’s going to happen that you don’t want to.”

“Oh yeah? How the hell did we get here then?”

The other man actually seemed a bit chagrined, but still argued. “You didn’t tell me to stop, and I gave you a chance to.”

Mike had no response to this.

Harvey went on. “I got a bit carried away. Your scent was… overwhelming. It won’t happen again.”

Mike snorted. “Oh, it won’t? Forgive me if I don’t believe you.”

Harvey shrugged. “Believe it or not, you are not that irresistible. You want to leave? Go ahead.”

Mike huffed. “Without my clothes?”

“Your choice.” Harvey rolled to his side, facing Mike, and propped himself up on an elbow. “ Or you could tell me why you walked into the interview wearing a bucket of odor suppressant. Last time I checked, registration with OI is completely voluntary.”

Mike laughed bitterly. “Yeah, voluntary. Sure.”

Harvey’s eyes narrowed. “Are you telling me it’s not?”

“It starts out as voluntary. ‘Register with us. We can help you. We understand you.’ Then when it comes out that you really don’t want to spend your life in service to an Alpha, they start to talk about taking away your benefits.”

“You get benefits for registering with the OI?” Harvey shook his head. “Wait, ’In service to an Alpha’? Is that what you think bonding is all about?”

“Hate to break it to you, but we are not all just pining Omegas waiting for an Alpha to come along and sweep us off our feet.”

Harvey shook his head. “There are so many things wrong with that sentence, I don’t know where to start. What benefits, kid?” 

Mike sighed. He rolled back onto his back and stared at the ceiling again. “My grandmother is … old. She needs to be in a nursing home with full time care. OI got her into one of the best places in the city at a reduced rate. But If I don’t go to interviews, that arrangement would stop. I can afford to keep her there on my own. And I can’t let her go to state care. She’s all I have.”

He glanced over at Harvey, who seemed to be considering this. “So you registered to get better care for your grandmother, but you don’t want to bond?”

“I have no desire to spend the rest of my life in _service_ to someone who thinks they are better than me.”

“Better than you?”

“Someone _who thinks_ they are better than me. I know how Omegas are perceived. It sucks.”

Harvey laughed. “That is an unusual attitude. Every other Omega that I have met enjoys the fact that they are somewhat special. They take pride in it.”

This was true. Many Omegas even got a small tattoo of the Greek letter Ω someplace discreet, like the inside of their wrist or the back of their neck, so they could show it off if they wanted. They all thought it made them more desirable. Mike didn’t agree. “I want to be prized for who I am. For my mind. Not some quirk of biology.”

“A quirk of biology? Is that all you think being an Omega is?”

Mike shrugged. “Sure, just like having red hair or a cleft chin. Except, you know, ten times worse.”

Harvey looked bewildered. “Worse? How?”

Mike huffed. “I have no interest in being anyone’s sex toy. I am more than that.”

“Sex toy?”

Mike sat up, gathering the sheet around himself. He snatched the remote off the bedside table and flicked on the tv. A few clicks brought him to the on-demand menu.

“There you go. Omega Sluts in Heat. Begging to be Bred. Dripping for You. This is how the world sees Omegas. Pardon me if I don’t want membership in that little club.”

Harvey stared at Mike and then back at the screen. “Porn?” he questioned incredulously. “That’s your evidence? Good God, kid, you must be constantly disappointed by pizza delivery.”

Mike huffed. “I know it’s mainly a fantasy. But that’s how everyone else sees us. Like we are some kind of sex toy.” Mike looked down at himself. “Look at us. You dragged me into a shower within 20 minutes of meeting me.”

Harvey was prepared to argue. “You know, that actually had nothing to do with the fact that you were an Omega. I did it because you were lying to me and I knew it. I knew right away there was something wrong. I couldn’t smell a thing on you. It pissed me off.”

“And what happened after?”

Harvey actually looked chagrined. “The influx of your scent… overwhelmed me. There’s a reason why wearing scent inhibitors are prohibited, you know. It’s dangerous.” 

Mike got up from the bed, taking care to keep the sheet wrapped around him. Harvey watched him do this unmoving. “I can’t count how many times people have thought that just because I was an Omega I’d sleep with anyone who wanted me. That I should be grateful for it, like I was just some kind of mindless sex machine.”

Harvey sighed. “There are ignorant idiots everywhere. Believe me; I work with a bunch of them. But that’s a far cry from thinking everyone is like that.”

Mike crossed his arms over his chest. “Most people--“

“A lot of people think all Alphas are just posturing assholes as well.” Mike looked away. “Oh, and you’re one of them, aren’t you.”

“Listen--“

“No, you listen to me. You are one with the hangup here. You’re ashamed of being an Omega for some reason. You think it’s a weakness. “You would rather be like everyone else. You don’t want to be special--“

“I am special.” Mike shouted. “But not because I am an Omega. I am more than that. I can remember everything I read, and once I read something, I understand it. I can ace almost any test that’s put in front of me. You wanted to know how I knew about Sarbannes-Oxley? Because I learned it when I studied for the bar exam, which I passed without ever setting foot in a law school. But are people interested in that? No. People learn that I am an Omega, and then it’s all about my sex life. When do I go into heat? Is it true I can get pregnant? I--“ Mike’s voice broke, and he trailed off. He was suddenly conscious of the fact that he was storming around a hotel room, yelling at a near stranger. He collapsed into a chair at the side of the bed and stared at the floor.

Harvey was staring at him. “Okay you’re special. And you’re an Omega. You are smart enough to know that your biology is not only thing that you are. But you are not smart enough to know that it’s still part of who you are. Jesus, kid, you spend all your energy denying your true nature and then you wonder why your life sucks?”

Mike bristled. “My life doesn’t--“

“Oh, it sucks. You’re brilliant, yet you are a college dropout. You studied and passed the bar exam but you are working as a bike messenger. Is that your idea of a fulfilling career?”

“Oh yeah, man. You’re not an asshole at all.”

“Shut up.” Harvey got out of bed and stalked, completely naked, over to where Mike was sitting. “You are a member of an institution you despise because you can’t afford to take care of your grandmother on your own. That can’t make you feel good about your life.”

Mike stood, mainly because he didn’t want to remain eye-level with Harvey’s dick. “At least it’s my life,” he yelled. “Not one dictated to me by some arrogant Alpha.”

“Maybe you need someone in your life who will tell you the hard truth. Cause you are sure as hell not getting it now.” Harvey reached out and grabbed Mike by the arm. An electric jolt shot through him. Harvey had clearly felt it too, because he dropped his hand from Mike’s arm like he had been burned.

***  
Christ, this kid was infuriating. Declaring that he didn’t need an Alpha, when Harvey had never met anyone who needed an Alpha more. He was brilliant, talented, yet directionless. Harvey wanted to shake him.

What was worse, there was clearly something between them now. That one touch had been like a lightning bolt, threatening his control. He wanted to wrap Mike in his arms, and soothe whatever long ago hurts had given him all of his mistaken impressions. Something about this kid was pushing all of his buttons. 

Harvey stepped back. He needed some distance right now. He looked at the kid, who was still glaring at him defiantly with his too wide, too blue eyes. “Are you hungry?” he asked.

Mike blinked. “What?”

Harvey padded into the main room of the suite, uncaring about that fact he was completely naked and picked up the menu for room service. “It’s going to be a while before our clothes are ready, and I am going to order some food. What do you what?”

Mike appeared in the doorway, still wrapped in the sheet. “Um…a cheeseburger?”

Harvey looked up from the menu he was reading. “We are at the Chilton Hotel. Do you really want a cheeseburger?”

Mike looked unsure. “Bacon cheeseburger? Oh, and onion rings?”

Harvey rolled his eyes, but reached for the phone to place the order for Mike’s meal along with a salad and sirloin for himself.

Mike sat primly on the couch while Harvey ordered. When he was done he dropped the phone and sat next to Mike on the couch. “It will be about thirty minutes before the food gets here, so we have some time to kill.”

Mike pulled back, suspicious, pressing himself against the edge of the couch. “What are you suggesting?”

“Calm down. Like I told you, you are not that irresistible. I want you to tell me about yourself. Really tell me, not those bullshit answers you gave me in the interview.”

Mike looked away. “It’s not that interesting a story.”

“Tell me anyway.”

Harvey worked hard to keep his face impassive as the kid spilled his guts. It was almost worse that he had expected. Mike had lost his parents to a drunk driver at the tender age of 11, right during the onset of puberty. This would be a trying time for any kid, but it would be worse for an Omega who had to deal with even more radical changes to his body.

He had been left with his grandmother, who clearly loved Mike and had done the best job she could. But she alone could not provide the support system that bright kid, let alone a brilliant Omega needed. It was a testament to her that Mike hadn’t spiraled even more out of control. 

But he had fallen into bad habits and under bad influences, (like his friend Trevor that Harvey already hated), and somehow gotten the idea that being an Omega is shameful (and wouldn’t Harvey love to get his hands on the person who had put that idea into Mike’s head).

“How did you handle your heats growing up?” Harvey asked.

Mike looked uncomfortable. “My grandmother used to take me to a clinic that would give me suppressants. But I hated it. I would feel…dull for weeks on end after I took them.”

Harvey understood this. He had had a similar experience with suppressants after his pheromones had started going crazy.

“So,” Mike went on, “After I turned 18, I started handling them myself.”

“How?”

Mike cleared his throat. “Pot, usually. Lots of pot.”

Harvey rolled his eyes. “Ah, so you’d smoke it into submission. Three days every few months stoned out of your mind? I bet that helped out a lot with your career aspirations.”

Mike bristled, but before he could say anything, Harvey went on. “Have you ever spent a heat with anyone else?”

“Once. Right after I graduated high school, my girlfriend asked me to spend one with her.”

“She was an Alpha?”

“No, a Beta.” Mike was staring at the carpet. “It didn’t go well. She broke up with me right afterwards.”

Harvey pressed his hand to his forehead. He could imagine. It would have been a disaster. Any high school girl, especially a Beta, would have no idea how to meet the needs of an Omega in heat. This girl had no doubt listened to rumors and pictured a fun-filled sex romp, when the reality had likely left Mike in agony for days, and her with the hard realization that she could never meet his needs.

But he wasn’t surprised that Mike had agreed to it. He was almost a prototypical Omega, loyal to a fault and easily swayed by those they care about. Perhaps his need for independence, this foolish assertion that he didn’t need an Alpha, had been fostered by losing the two most important people in his life at age 11. It made him determined to go it alone. But Harvey had never met someone who needed an Alpha more. 

_But not just any Alpha,_ whispered a voice in his head. _An Alpha who can show him everything he is capable of. An Alpha would could teach him to revel in his true nature, and show him all the things he is missing…_

Harvey ruthlessly tamped down on the inner voice, but it continued anyway…

_An Alpha like you._

***  
Mike was still spilling his guts when mercifully; there was a knock on the door. Room service had arrived. Harvey left Mike alone in the main room of the suite, wrapping a towel around himself as headed down the long narrow passageway to the entrance to the hotel hallway. He signed the slip, tipping generously if the effusive “Thank you!” was anything to go by, and then wheeled in the cart laden with food.

Mike was suddenly ravenous. He devoured his cheeseburger, the accompanying onion rings and fries. Then he polished off the rest of Harvey’s mashed potatoes and good portion of the huge slab of cheesecake that had also been delivered.

Swallowing the last bite, he suddenly became conscious of Harvey’s gaze across the table.

“I don’t usually eat like this.” The words burst from him. He didn’t know why he felt compelled to say this.

“Mike,” Harvey said slowly. “I think you are going into heat.” 

“What?” Mike was stunned. “No.” But even as the denial burst from his lips, he became aware of the tell-tale signs. His skin felt itchy and tight, and there was moisture between his buttocks. He felt a sweat break out across his skin. “No, it’s not the right time.”

Harvey sighed. “It’s probably a reaction from being around me, with all of the pheromones that I am shedding. Plus the fact you haven’t had a real heat in years. What happened earlier might have triggered it.”

“Oh god.” Mike’s first reaction was blind panic. He can’t go into heat with an Alpha sitting across from him. He quickly evaluates his options and finds that he has none. He could run, but he only had a sheet wrapped around him. He could image the reaction that an Omega, in heat, wrapped only in a sheet, would get on the streets of New York City. He jumped to his feet.

“Mike,” Harvey’s voice cut through his thoughts. Mike jumped. In his panicking state he had not heard Harvey get up and come to stand next to him. He tried to bolt, thinking he could lock himself in the bathroom, but Harvey’s strong grip wrapped around his bicep. There was a brief tussle that Mike lost spectacularly. He found himself wrapped in the Alpha’s arms.

Mike forced himself to look at Harvey. “I have to go. I need to--“

Harvey pressed his nose into Mike’s neck and inhaled deeply. “It’s coming on fast. Do you think you’d have enough time to get home and make your usual arrangements?” 

Mike would not. He was trapped. A strangled moan escaped his throat.

“Shh.” Harvey petted smooth strokes down his back. “It’s going to be alright. We are clearly attracted to each other. Spend your heat here with me and I will take care of you. We can… get to know each other better.

Mike huffed into Harvey’s shoulder. 

He could feel Harvey smile in response. “You have my word that I won’t bite you without your express consent. No bonding if you don’t want to. We can just part ways after, but doing this will keep you in good standing with OI for at least another year.”

It was a compelling argument. 

“Mike,” Harvey pulled back and took Mike’s face in his hands. “Stay with me. Please.” He looked surprised after, like the ‘please’ had slipped out without him thinking about it.

“Okay,” Mike whispered. “Okay, I’ll stay.”


	5. Chapter 5

Mike had agreed. He was still shaky about it. He had agreed to spend his heat in a hotel room with an Alpha dripping with pheromones. What had he done?

Harvey’s reaction to this agreement was not exactly what Mike was expecting. He had expected... well if not for Harvey to throw him into bed, then at least a passionate embrace, a kiss. But what Harvey did was nod, drop his hands from Mike’s face, and stroll over to the credenza where he pulled out a Blackberry and proceeded to spend the next 40 minutes shouting into it.

Mike retreated to the couch, half bemused, half annoyed at this turn of events. After eavesdropping shamelessly for a few minutes, he knew that Harvey was only being practical. Harvey had called the front desk and requested several changes of sheets and other supplies; toothbrushes, toothpaste, and extra soap. Then he called Room Service and ordered a case of bottled water and food that could be stored in the mini fridge. Mike figured that would take them at least through the early heat. Luckily the Chilton was extremely accommodating, at least for guests as prestigious as Harvey Specter.

After he had hung up with the concierge, Mike sat up expectantly, but Harvey only produced Mike’s cell phone from the same drawer. “Do you need to call someone?”

Mike took his phone as Harvey called someone named Donna and proceeded to bark orders at her. Mike made a quick call to his grandmother to let her know that he wouldn’t be able to visit her over the weekend, then shot out a couple quick texts to Trevor and Jenny. Jenny had already sent him a text asking how the interview went. Mike looked up at Harvey, who was rescheduling appointments with Donna, and shook his head. How to respond to that? He settled for a brief “Went okay.” And told her he was going to be out of town for the next few days for a temp job. She accepted Trevor’s lies easily enough; she should have no problem with that.

He tossed his phone to the side as Harvey finally hung up. He took a long look at Mike before walking over to join him on the couch.

“How are you feeling?” Harvey asked.

Mike shifted. “Hot,” He answered simply. He was. It was one of his first symptoms of a heat. He felt hot and sweaty. It would be noticeably worse if he was wearing clothes, but luckily…

Harvey leaned over and pressed a chaste kiss to Mike’s lips. “I’ll go turn the AC up.” He padded into the bathroom, still naked.

Mike tried not to watch his ass as he walked away.

Harvey returned to the main room a few minutes later wearing a terrycloth robe. Mike squinted at it. He was about to ask why he had spent the whole afternoon wrapped up in a sheet if there had been robes in the closet when he caught Harvey’s smirk. Jerk.

His glare didn’t seem to affect Harvey any though. He sat down beside him again. “How long does it usually take for it to come on fully?”

Mike shook his head. “Don’t know. Haven’t done it without pot in a while.”

A disapproving line appeared between Harvey’s eyebrows. Mike when on before he could express said disapproval. “This is always the worse part. The waiting, and feeling hot and itchy and empty and—” He clammed up. 

“And what?” Harvey prompted.

Mike looked away.

“Hey,” Harvey reached out and cupped Mike’s jaw with one hand, forcing him to look at him, “And what?”

Mike sighed. “I just always felt really alone, you know. Lonely.”

Harvey leaned forward and kissed him again. This kiss was deeper, warmer. “Well, you are not going to be alone this time.” He scooted closer to Mike on the couch, and pulled him into his arms. Mike closed his eyes. God, it had been so long. So long since he had been held, touched like this. It was all Mike could do not to melt into Harvey’s embrace.

They traded long kisses as Harvey slowly ran his hands up and down Mike’s back. It was better. This was good, so good that Mike lost track of time for a while. He was startled when Harvey suddenly pulled away from him. He felt a spike of panic. Had he changed his mind? Was he going to leave him here?

“Go in the bedroom and shut the door.” It’s an Alpha command. Mike stands before he knows why.

“What?”

There is a knock at the door, and Mike belatedly realizes that the supplies must be outside.

“Go into the bedroom.” Harvey prods him again. Mike is confused, and a bit hurt. Doesn’t Harvey want to be seen with him? His emotions must have showed on his face, because Harvey’s softened a bit and he pulled him close again. There was another knock on the door.

“Just a minute.” Harvey called out, and then pushed him towards the bedroom again. “Close the door, Mike. No one gets to see you like this but me.”

Mike made it into the bedroom and collapsed onto the bed. In the large mirrored door on the closet he saw what Harvey meant. His eyes are wide, lips kiss bitten and full. Flags of color were bright on his cheeks. He reached up and ran a hand through his messy hair. He looked like a ripe Omega, ready to be claimed.

This was really happening. He was here, in the Chilton Hotel and about to spend a heat with an Alpha for the first time. Mike’s heart raced, and it was worrying he couldn’t tell why. Fear? Or Anticipation?

***

Harvey watched the door close behind Mike before he headed towards the main door of the suite. He let in the two bellhops carrying the requested sheets and a case of bottled water, followed by a maid with a cart of packaged food.

As they moved into the main room, one of the bellhops, obviously an Alpha, stared at the bedroom door with an undisguised longing. Harvey glared at him as he dropped the bedding and other sundries on the couch and slunk out of the room. The other bellhop actually winked at him as he set down the case of water and left as well.

Harvey signed the slip for the maid, then closed and locked the door behind them. He leaned his forehead against the door. What was he doing? Had he really told the kid to stay?

Unlike many Alphas, Harvey had never bought in to the whole Omega-in-Heat fantasy. Omegas in heat were needy, completely dependent on their Alphas. It was not something that he had ever considered desirable. He had never wanted to be that needed.

But this kid, with the wide blue eyes and the panic flitting across his features, had tugged at something in Harvey that he had never knew existed. Mike was trying to deny who he truly was, and Harvey couldn’t abandon him to a marijuana filled haze for another heat. 

Mike was waiting for him when he opened up the bedroom door, jumping off the bed and wrapping his arms around him, as if the brief separation had cause him to go into withdrawal. He pressed his face into Harvey’s neck and muttered, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Harvey stroked his hands down Mike’s back and watched the Omega arch into the touch. This kid was seriously touch-starved. “Let’s lay down, okay?”

The both reclined back on the bed.

“So tell me more about your heats, besides the pot. How long do they usually last?”

Mike shrugged. “Usually around 4 days, I guess.”

“And you normally spend them by yourself?”

Mike nodded.

“What do you use on yourself? Toys? A vibrator?”

Color flooded Mike’s face. “Um,” he looked away. “Just a dildo.”

“That’s all?” Mike nodded again. “Well, we should be able to do better this time.”

Mike didn’t answer. His face was still red.

“You’re going to have to talk to me about this, you know.”

“It’s ridiculous.” Mike burst out. “I hate it.”

Harvey smiled gently. “I don’t blame you, really. I think I would hate it too.”

Mike huffed in response and sank down further on to the pillows.

“How much longer until it’s fully on you?”

“No idea.” Mike squirmed. “Um, an hour? Maybe two?”

Harvey kissed Mike. “What do you want to do till then?”

Mike shrugged.

Harvey turned on the TV. He flipped channels until he found some kind of soft core Alpha/Omega porn on Pay-per-View, which he ordered while smirking at Mike. “How apt.” He then settled down in the bed, pulling the Omega against him, slowly stroking his hand down Mike’s back.

Mike rolled his eyes about Harvey’s TV choice. “Nice. I told you I hate these things.”

“This stuff’s better than that crap you’ve seen, believe me.”

“Oh, you’re an expert on Omega porn, are you?”

Harvey only grinned.

Mike lay back against Harvey’s chest, and closed his eyes, clearly only half-listening to the TV. It was a lesbian storyline. The Alpha, a sweet but shy redhead, was madly in love with her best friend, a wisecracking, tattooed Omega with raven hair. The Omega believed that she could never attract the attention of her Alpha friend. Things come to a head when they were out of a hiking trip, and eat some berries that send the Omega into an early heat. All is resolved.

Mike pressed his face into Harvey’s neck, closing his eyes and steadfastly ignoring the “ooohs” and “aahs” coming from the TV.

Harvey turned the volume down, and fell into a light doze. The room was growing cold, but he was soothed by the heat that seemed to be emanating from Mike in waves. 

He was awoken some time later by Mike rocking his body against his, moaning softly. 

“Oh, God, Harvey, unh.” Mike arched against him.

Harvey pressed his thigh between his legs and was greet by a gush of moisture.

“You should have woken me sooner,” Harvey moaned as he rolled them over and clamored on top of Mike. Everything in him was clamoring, _Take, Take, Take_. The Omega was ready to be claimed, to be owned by a proper Alpha for the first time. Harvey was already rock hard. He tore the sheet away from Mike and pushed his knees to his chest. Mike gripped his own thighs and held himself open for Harvey’s inspection.

He slipped a finger in Mike’s entrance and found it dripping with moisture. 

Mike bucked in response. “Harvey, I need it. I need you. I’m ready. Please, please, please.”

“I have what you need, Mike.” Harvey leaned down and captured his mouth in a messy kiss. 

Harvey guided his cock into place, rubbing the head back and forth against Mike’s sopping entrance. Mike shook beneath him and fumbled one hand onto Harvey’s hip, gripping hard and trying to pull him in.

“Please, Harvey. Don’t tease. I can’t.”

He couldn’t resist the Omega’s plea. Harvey slowly thrust his cock into Mike’s deep, wet heat. Mike mewled in response, and arched underneath him responsively. Harvey bottomed out and stilled for a moment and squeezed his eyes shut. He felt overwhelmed already. This was like no other sex he had ever experienced. Mike was so wet, and so hot and coming to pieces underneath him. 

He started to move again, taking care to keep his thrusts gentle. “You are so good, Mike. Look at you, taking every inch of my cock like a good Omega.”

Mike only gave a wordless cry, and tried to spread his legs wider.

Harvey thrust deeper. He could already feel his knot starting to swell. Oh, this was so, so good. He wasn’t going to last. He wrapped a hand around Mike’s cock, and began stroking him in time with his thrusts. 

“Yes, Mike, so good. So good for me. Such a good boy.”

Mike cried out and arched, and came all over his belly. The sight and scent shattered what was left of Harvey’s control. He let go, gripping Mike’s hips hard and thrusting as hard as he could.

“Oh, Mike, you were made for this. You were made for me.” His knot swelled, and Harvey threw his head back and came. It felt endless. Colors exploded in front of his eyes. His entire universe was concentrated to where he and Mike were joined. It felt…right.

When he came back to himself, Mike was shaking underneath him, his eyes opened in panic. “What—What?”

Harvey remembered that Mike had never been knotted before.

“It’s my knot. Shhhh, just relax. Your body was made for this, Mike.”

Mike shuddered. “So full…God.”

Harvey realized that this position might be uncomfortable for Mike, with his knees pressed to his chest and Harvey’s weight on top of him. He shifted them to their sides. Mike cried out as Harvey’s knot to shifted inside him.

The slight movement set Harvey off again. A few more gentle thrusts and he came again. “Sorry, sorry.” Harvey pressed his hands into Mike’s lower back and massaged the tense muscles there. Mike slumped into him, muttering into his skin. Harvey shuddered, wrapping his arms around the Omega, holding him close. _Mine._

***

After the knot had subsided enough for Harvey to pull out, Mike felt a sudden burst of energy. As they waited for the next wave, he decided that he wanted to explore Harvey. Harvey had smiled, laid back and let Mike chart out his body. Every mole and freckle was mapped out with Mike’s perfect memory. Reasons for every scar were detailed to his satisfaction. He knew that he would never forget them.

It wasn’t long before Mike was giving out pained whimpers and Harvey was hard again.

“On your knees, this time,” Harvey ordered.

Mike quickly flipped himself over, bracing on his knees and forearms. 

Harvey quickly climbed on top of him. He pressed a wet kiss to the base of Mike’s neck, and proceeded to lick a lazy trail down his spine, stopping every so often to sink his teeth into a meaty section of flesh, chuckling at Mike’s resultant growls.

Mike reveled in this attention, but was unprepared for the slick heat of Harvey’s tongue flicking hotly against his hole. He yelped loudly, bucking as Harvey licked at his entrance, tracing his pucker with the tip of tongue.

Mike threw his head back. “Harvey - Harvey, oh my god.”

Harvey used his thumbs to hold him open and pressed his tongue obscenely deep, skilled muscle fucking into Mike until he’s mindless with it, fucking himself wantonly back on the Alpha’s mouth. Words were beyond him now. He could only groan as the Alpha tasted him.

It wasn’t enough, but he still cried out when Harvey pulled away. The loss felt overwhelming; even though he knew something much better was coming. He rebalanced him and canted his ass up invitingly. 

The first thrust of Harvey’s cock was so forceful it knocked him off-balance, and his face was smushed into the pillow. A bruising grip on his hips pulled him upright again for the next thrust. Mike could only savor the feeling of being filled, being completed, being _owned_ as he never had been before. This time, when he felt the knot inside him start to swell, there was no panic. He welcomed it. He glanced backward and Harvey looked utterly wrecked, beyond pleasure, as he met his gaze.

“Oh god, Mike. Your eyes,” he groaned. “So beautiful.”

Mike let himself go.

***

Harvey woke slowly, awareness creeping back in. He was groggy and sated, the result of some truly remarkable sex. To his left, he found Mike still dead to the world next to him, lying on his stomach snoring softly. Looking over him, Harvey experienced a frightening wave of affection.

He shook it off. Mike was probably dehydrated after those first two knottings, so Harvey needed to get some water and food into him before the next wave struck. He crawled out of the bed and got two bottles of water from the case in the living room.

“Wha…” Mike muttered sleepily as Harvey pulled him into a sitting position and held an open bottle to his lips. “Come on, Mike. You need a drink.”

Mike shook his head sleepily, and then rested it on Harvey’s shoulder. “Tired.”

“I know you are, kid. But we need to get some fluids in you.” Mike chuckled into his skin. “Yeah, yeah, come on.” He pressed the bottle to Mike’s lips, cradling his head like a baby’s.

Mike sighed, but opened his lips. After the first swallow, Mike drank thirstily and soon the entire bottle was gone. Harvey pressed the second bottle into Mike’s hand as he disentangled them. “Drink that, too. I am going to get us some food.”

He returned a few moments later carrying two containers of sandwiches and a bag of potato chips.  
They had an impromptu picnic spread out on the bed, eating and sharing the bag of chips between them. After about fifteen minutes, Harvey looked up to see Mike’s eyes fixed on his lips as he brought a potato chip to his mouth. His pupils were blown again. Harvey barely had time to move the remaining food to the floor before Mike launched himself at him. So much for his plan of changing the sheets before the next round. 

After tackling Harvey down on the bed, Mike mounted him. “Sorry,” he muttered, “I need it.”

Harvey soothed him with a kiss. He propped himself up against the headboard with Mike astride him, riding his cock. Harvey kept his hands on Mike’s hips as he moved himself up and down, guiding him. They exchanged long deep kisses with every thrust.

This time, as Harvey’s knot begin to swell inside him, Mike pulled back and grinned at him, such an open artless grin that Harvey could not help returning it. He wrapped a hand around Mike’s erection and began to slowly pump him in time with Mike’s movements. He grinned as Mike’s eyes rolled back in pleasure. This coupling was slower, gentler, with them both taking the time to draw out each other’s pleasure.

Afterwards, still knotted, he settled a drowsy Mike on top of him. Harvey watched the dawn light brighten in the windows. The sun was rising. He wrapped his arms around Mike and hugged him close. How many more days would they have together? What would happen when this was over?

Driven by ancient instinct, he licked gently at Mike’s neck. Mike hummed sleepily in response, and arched his neck, exposing his throat. He was half asleep, still limp and pliant with his recent orgasms.

Harvey pressed his lips to the side of Mike’s neck. To that spot, the special lymph node that contained the pair bonding hormones and pheromones. That place that, when bitten, would release its chemicals to mix with his saliva, and change them both irreversibly. They would imprint. After that, they would belong to each other permanently. Mike would be his. His Omega. 

He felt Mike tense on top of him and pulled his mouth away, ready to apologize.

“Do it,” Mike said softly.

“What?” Harvey was stunned.

“Bite me. I know you want to. Bite me. Go ahead.”

Harvey trembled, but kept himself under rigid control as he shook his head. “No. Mike, I can’t.”


	6. Chapter 6

Mike tensed as he felt Harvey’s lip move over his neck. He should have been nervous with an Alpha’s teeth so close, but instead a sense of incredible… rightness had swept over him. Harvey pulled away and Mike felt the loss of his lips keenly.

“Do it,” he whispered.

“What?” 

“Bite me. I know you want to. Bite me. Go ahead.”

There was a long pause before Harvey answered, “Mike…I can’t”

Mike shut his eyes as a wave of despair washed over him. Of course, of course, this beautiful man would never want to bond with him. Stupid. Even worse, he began to feel tears well up under his eyelids. He tried to pull away, to hide his face in his pillow, but he couldn’t. They were still knotted together.

“Hey, hey, now” Harvey comforted, bringing his hand to cup Mike’s face. “Mike, no, not like that.”

“I’m sorry--” Mike was ashamed his voice broke. “I’m sorry I asked. Forget I said anything.”

“No, Mike.” Harvey brought his hand to Mike’s face. “I want to. I do. But you don’t. It’s just the heat that’s making you say these things.”

Mike could only shake his head mutely.

“Yes…Mike, you came into the interview yesterday doused in suppressant. You didn’t want to bond.”

Mike was still silent, but tears had started streaming down his cheeks.

“Mike, please, after the heat, I’ll take you in a second—“

“No,” Mike said thickly, “No, you won’t want me then.”

“Mike, that’s not true.” Harvey frowned at him.

“Why would you want me otherwise?” He tried to pull away, but Harvey held him in his strong grip.

“No, no. Mike, you need more time. If when this is over—Mike, look at me. Look! We’ll wait awhile. In a few days, if you still want this, there is nothing on earth that would stop me taking you.”

Mike said nothing. He pressed his face into Harvey’s shoulder as Harvey’s hands stroked up and down his back. He pretended to go to sleep, though he was pretty sure that Harvey knew he was faking. Eventually Harvey’s hands stilled and his breathing deepened. Mike lifted his head to look at the sleeping man beneath him. Harvey’s face looked younger, almost innocent, in sleep. It showed none of that wicked humor or razor sharp mind that Mike knew was just below the surface. 

It was almost cruel, this heat, exposing him to this man who was everything Mike would never be. But Mike didn’t resent it. He wanted to soak up every moment they had together, so he could remember it the next time his heat came around, and he had to endure it without Harvey.

***  
Mike eventually fell asleep. When he came around, the clock showed a few hours had passed. Harvey was still asleep next to him, but his knot had subsided so Mike could roll away from him easily. Mike stood stiffly and crept into the bathroom. He turned on the shower, and brushed his teeth with one of the new toothbrushes while he waited for the water to warm. In the shower he soaped himself up, washing away the sweat and come that had accumulated on his skin. He wished he could wash away his stupid emotions too. Jesus, he had actually cried in front of Harvey. How humiliating.

When he emerged from the bathroom, he found Harvey already awake and in the midst of changing the sheets on the bed.

“Hey,” Harvey said.

“Hi,” Mike said in return, suddenly shy. It was ridiculous; they been humping like rabbits for the past day and a half. “Need any help?”

“Almost done.”

Mike sat gingerly in the chair by the bed, and watched as Harvey effectively made up the bed. As he pulled the duvet up over the sheets, he turned back to Mike. “Are you hungry?”

Mike shrugged.

Harvey walked over and tugged Mike out of the chair and into his arms. “How are you feeling?”

This affectionate embrace threatened Mike’s hard-fought calm. “I’m fine,” he mumbled into Harvey’s shoulder.

“Mike, we should talk about—“

“No,” Mike cut him off. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Mike--”

“No, you were right. I don’t want… it.”

“Mike,” Harvey tried to pull back, but Mike clung to him. He couldn’t let Harvey see his face.

“I don’t want it.”

Harvey succeeded in pulling away. “I do. I really do, Mike. But I don’t want you to regret this, or blame it on your heightened emotional state.”

Mike turned away.

“You’re vulnerable right now,” Harvey went on. “Dependent on me. That’s my fault.”

It really was not. Mike wanted to argue with Harvey about it.

“I am going to ask you again tomorrow. You still want this then—“

“I don’t want it now.” Mike bit out. “I’m sorry about what I said. Sorry I made you feel obligated.” He felt a twinge, and cursed inwardly. The heat was coming on again.

He pulled back the covers of the freshly made bed and crawled in.

“Mike.” Harvey didn’t look happy.

“Harvey, I need you again. I don’t want to talk anymore. Please.”

Harvey seemed about to argue, but Mike was racked with another visible shudder. He climbed into bed and reached for him. Mike let him pull him close. “Okay.”

Harvey kissed him, and pressed his nose into Mike’s neck. He growled. 

“What?”

“You don’t smell like me anymore.” He pushed Mike onto his back, and climbed on top of him, rubbing his body over Mike’s. Mike chuckled as he was deftly flipped over and the process repeated on his back. “I guess I should be glad you’re not peeing on me.”

“That’s never been one of my kinks,” Harvey replied, licking a path down Mike’s shoulder blades. He rubbed his erection against the back of Mike’s muscular upper thigh. Moisture leaked out of Mike’s entrance and trickled down his balls.

“Come on, Harvey” Mike groaned into his pillow. “I need it.”

“I have what you need.” Harvey hefted himself upward; one hand pressed into Mike’s back, holding him down as he lined himself up. He slowly fucked himself into Mike’s dripping hole. It didn’t take him long to find the perfect angle. Mike gaped, open mouthed. He was being held down by Harvey’s weight, by the hands on his shoulders, so he was unable to move, or get any kind of friction on his cock. He was forced to remain still and just feel Harvey slowly, so slowly, moving in and out of him. He felt completely owned

“Perfect, Mike. So fucking perfect.”

Mike shuddered, ready to beg, ready to scream into the mattress.

“That’s it. That’s my good boy.” Harvey leaned down and bit the skin of his left shoulder, hard.

Mike yelped, and came so quickly he saw stars in front of his eyes. He was dimly aware of Harvey thrusting faster into him, and then collapsing on top of him with a shout, but he couldn’t move.

***

Harvey rolled them onto their sides, pulling Mike out of the wet spot he had left on the sheets and began pressing gentle kisses into the delicate skin behind Mike’s ear and along his jaw.

“I do want you,” Harvey whispered. The things he wanted with Mike were shocking to him. He never expected that this kind of connection could form so quickly.

Holding Mike close, he allowed his mind to drift. He remembered, in high school, having to go a special health class for Alphas. A guest lecturer had come to talk to them about bonding, and Harvey had dismissed it all as romantic drivel. Someone had asked about how anyone knew when they had found _their_ Omega, and the lecturer had responded cryptically, “You’ll know because they’ll have locks that fit your keys, and keys that fit your locks.” Harvey had made a double entendre that had the class laughing. He now felt compelled to look up the lecturer and apologize to him.

He wanted to take Mike to his home, and watch him sleep in Harvey’s bed. But he also wanted to see where Mike was living too (probably some shoebox apartment in the outer boroughs) and take him on his own bed. He wanted to take Mike shopping, buy him some decent clothes, to see what this too-skinny body would look like in a well cut suit. He wanted to take Mike places: Paris, California, Barbados just to see how Mike would react. He had never wanted things like that with anybody else, but the thought of _not_ doing these things with Mike made him tighten his grip around the other man

Mike murmured sleepily.

Mike had been willing to bond with him just a few hours ago, but Harvey knew the heat pheromones were mostly to blame for that. He couldn’t risk taking Mike and then having him resent him once he was clear headed again. 

Part of him, the calculating lawyer part, the Closer, knew he shouldn’t press for bonding during this heat. He should take the opportunity to properly woo Mike. He could take him on dates: ballgames at Yankee Stadium, rides in expensive cars from the car club, weekends in the Hamptons or Martha’s Vineyard. He would show him how they were compatible outside the bedroom. That way, the next time Mike’s heat came around, they could bond without any hesitation.

However, the primal Alpha part of Harvey dismissed this plan out of hand. There was no way he was letting Mike out of his sight again without his mark on that slender neck. No way was that not happening.

Mike rocked back against him, causing Harvey’s knot to shift inside of him. Harvey muffled a groan into Mike’s shoulder. Mike chuckled, and Harvey pushed his hips forward in response. This time they both groaned. Harvey reached down and stroked Mike’s cock into hardness again.

“Oh, fuck,” Mike muttered. “Can you go again?”

Harvey pushed forward again; just slow little thrusts, barely moving at all. His knot swelled even more inside Mike, and soon Mike was gasping, his cock leaking over Harvey’s hand. 

Harvey leaned forward and began to whisper into Mike’s ear, “That’s right, my sweet boy. You just lie back and let your Alpha take care of you. That’s what you need, isn’t it?”

“Harvey—“ Mike wailed.

Harvey bit Mike’s earlobe softly, not letting up with their gentle rocking or the slow strokes of Mike’s cock.

“You’re my Omega, aren’t you, Mike. Tell me you’re mine.”

Mike shook his head frantically, and Harvey slowed his hand.

“Please, please” Mike shuddered, trying both to arch his cock into Harvey’s hand and then rock back against his knot at the same time.

Harvey pressed his hand into Mike’s hip, stilling his movement. “Tell me, Mike.” He ordered.

“Fuck, fuck, Harvey, I’m yours. You know I am. I was yours from the moment I walked into that fucking interview room.”

Harvey began to move again, but once the words were out, Mike apparently couldn’t stop the flood.

“Yours since you threw me in the shower and ripped off my clothes and I’m always going to be yours. My first Alpha, my first knotting—“

Harvey growled, “Your first and last, Omega.”

“Yes, yes, please, you know I want that.”

“I do. That’s good, yes Mike. Now come, come for your Alpha. Come for me.”

Mike shuddered, and did. Messy spurts of come smeared over his stomach and Harvey’s hand.

“Such a good boy, Mike.”

Harvey wrapped his arms around Mike, smearing the come all over Mike’s chest as well, and drove his knot as far as he could inside Mike. He came so hard he nearly passed out.

***  
Harvey was not sure how long they drifted in the afterglow. He was vaguely aware of Mike rolling away from him after the knot had subsided. He hadn’t liked that, but he couldn’t get his arms to move to keep him close. 

When he finally found the energy to open his eyes and roll to his side he found Mike watching him pensively. 

Harvey smiled. “I’m starving.”

That was clearly not what Mike was expecting. He laughed. “I’m pretty hungry myself.”

“I think we still have some sandwiches left.”

“I’ll go check.” Mike pushed away the covers and got out of bed.

“Good, I still can’t move.” 

Mike laughed as he moved into the other room. Harvey watched his ass as he walked away. Mike returned a few minutes later carrying the sandwiches and a couple bottles of water.

“Looks like roast beef and chicken salad. Want to split them?”

Harvey nodded agreeably. They ate and drank in relative silence until Harvey picked up the remote and flicked on the TV.

“No more porn,” Mike protested.

Harvey grinned at him. “I was just going to check the news. See what empires have fallen since we have been locked away in here. And maybe how the Yankees are doing.”

Mike laughed. 

They watched the news and half a baseball game before Mike began to squirm uncomfortably again. Harvey pulled Mike close and flicked off the TV.

“You can leave it on.”

Harvey rolled his eyes. “I’m not making love to you with ESPN on in the background, Mike.”

Mike grinned cheekily. “Game’s kinds close. I am just saying I wouldn’t mind.”

“I would.” Harvey’s hands were stroking up and down Mike’s back again, and Mike melted into him.

“Making love?” he asked suddenly.

“Hmm?” Harvey nosed behind his left ear.

“You said we were making love.”

Harvey kissed Mike’s neck. “Yeah. Is that not what we are doing?”

Mike shrugged. “I don’t know. Just sounds kind of romantic.”

Harvey pulled back. “How would you describe it? Don’t tell me you think I’m just servicing you here.”

Mike laughed. “Sure. You’re the plumber and I need my drain—“

“Don’t even think about finishing that, kid.” Harvey pressed his lips to Mike’s. They exchanged a long messy kiss.

Mike’s arms looped around Harvey’s neck and he rubbed himself against the Alpha’s body, feeling the hard erection against his thigh. “Oh, yeah” He climbed on top of Harvey, straddling his lap.

Harvey let him, lying back, running his hands over Mike’s chest. “Mike, I meant what I said. This isn’t just me servicing you. I want you…” He tweaked a nipple.

Mike arched into his hand. “Sure. I want you too. Now.”

Harvey sat up and licked the outer shell of Mike’s ear. “I don’t just want you like this, Mike. I want you all the time.” 

Mike shuddered, purposefully pulled back and arched his neck, baring his throat. “Prove it.”

“Mike--”

“Harvey, please, now. I don’t want to wait anymore. Do it.”

Harvey hesitated, clearly torn. “Mike, are you sure?”

Mike closed his eyes. He was still a seething mass of insecurities. He knew that. He still was not sure how he was going to handle being bonded to the tour de force that was Harvey Spector. But he knew that after this, he wasn’t sure he could handle being without it. He rolled his hips, then reached back and took a firm grip of Harvey’s cock, angled and then sank down on it. “I am, Harvey. I want you to do it.” He leaned forward and nipped at Harvey’s neck. 

Harvey growled. “Fuck, Mike. I am going to take such care of you. I’ll give you anything you want.” 

Mike rocked back. “I just want to be myself. But I want to be with you too.”

Harvey was shaking underneath him. He was not sure if it was because of nerves, or desire, but they were here, now. They both knew there was no going back. “That’s fine. That’s perfect. Mike. You’re so lovely, brilliant, beautiful. I want to show the world how special you are.”

They began to move together, rocking slowly, letting the moment build between them. They exchanged slow, messy kisses until Mike was crying out and Harvey wrapped a strong hand around his cock and stroked him to completion. Mike slumped against Harvey’s chest.

“Do you know what else you are?” Harvey growled

“What?” Mike mumbled.

“Mine.” Teeth sank into Mike’s neck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The comment about locks and keys is from a passage by Richard Bach on soulmates.
> 
> There will be an epilogue up shortly, and then a short sequel to follow. Thank you so much again for all your comments and kudos. They have been amazing!


	7. Chapter 7

Mike drifted awake slowly, lazily stretching out over the bed. He felt sore, well used and tired, but content. He could tell that the heat was completely over now, his errant biology soothed for another couple of months.

He smiled. His next heat might even be something to look forward to, rather than the dread which had consumed him in the past. He stretched his neck to the side and didn’t even feel anxious when he realized that Harvey was no longer in bed next to him. He could tell, somehow, that the other man was only out in the living room.

He padded into the bathroom and took a long, hot shower, rinsing the last of the sweat off of himself leisurely. He brushed his teeth and then took a few moments just to stare at the purpling bite mark just below his jaw. He kept waiting to feel some sort of panic, or regret, or any other kind of second thought, but none came. In fact, he had a still having a hard time keeping a goofy smile off his face whenever he looked at it.

He found Harvey, as expected, in the living room, but to his surprise the other man was dressed in jeans and a long sleeve tee shirt. His eyes darken as they fixed on Mike’s neck.

“Morning,” Mike offered, a bit shy suddenly.

“Good morning.” Harvey crossed the room to his and cupped Mike’s face in his hands. “Any regrets yet?”

Mike smiled and shook his head.

“Good.” Harvey leaned in and gave him a brief kiss. “I ordered breakfast.” He gestured to the table. “Eat up. And I called OI. They are going to send someone over this morning to confirm.” his eyes once again focused on Mike’s neck, ”this.” He trailed a finger over the mark, causing Mike to shiver in response.

Mike sat and helped himself to some eggs and coffee. “Am I going to have to meet them in my towel?” Mike teased.

Harvey chuckled and shook his head. “I had my assistant pick up some clothes for you.” He produced a shopping bag, and handed them to Mike. “She dropped them off this morning.”

“New clothes?”

Harvey smiled toothily. “Alpha prerogative. I am supposed to shower you with gifts.”

Mike laughed and popped a piece of toast into his mouth. “How long have you been up?” he asked when they parted.

“A while. I have had arrangements to make.”

“Arrangements?”

“For us. Plus I had to see how badly my associate screwed up while I wasn’t there to look over his shoulder.”

While Mike ate, Harvey entertained him with several stories about his associates incompetence, his eyes sparkling with pleasure every time Mike laughed. Finally, when Mike’s plate was empty, he stood and pulled him up into a kiss. “Now go and get dressed, you hussy.” He smacked Mike playfully on the ass.

Mike laughed and retreated to the bathroom with his bag of new clothes while Harvey called his associate. In the bag he found a tee shirt, new jeans, a pair of brown leather boots, a jacket and some new socks and underwear. All his size. He wondered how Harvey’s assistant had managed that.

He pulled on the silky boxer shorts and then the jeans. He winced when he saw the price tags attached. The jeans alone cost more than anything he owned. He deliberately did not look at the tags for the butter soft tee shirt or the jacket as he ripped them off. 

When he emerged from the bedroom, Harvey was still talking into his Blackberry, “Get Wyatt to calm down. I’ll call him tomorrow. We’ll get ahead of this and file the patent even before the initial meeting. That should curtail any shenanigans they have in store.”

He glanced up at Mike and his eyes darkened as he took in the new attire. “Okay, gotta go. Talk to you later.” He clicked off before there could be any response, his eyes roving over Mike’s form.

Mike spun around like a runway model. “Well? Do I pass inspection?”

Harvey approached him and slung an arm around his waist, pulling him close. “I like seeing you like this. In clothes I paid for.”

“I am not some doll for you to dress now.” Mike tried to affect a stern face, but couldn’t maintain it. He was too happy. Post bonding euphoria, he thought. Was that a thing?

“I think I am going to like undressing you more.” Harvey nosed at the bite while his hands groped Mike’s ass thoroughly. 

They were broken apart by a knock on the door. Harvey opened it to reveal a middle-aged woman with short blond hair in a well cut pantsuit.

“Mr. Specter?” she asked in a clipped British accent. “I’m Dr. Hobson from the Omega Institute.”

“Nice to meet you.” Harvey extended his hand and she shook it with a smile. “And this is Mike Ross, my…partner.”

Dr. Hobson walked into the room and shook Mike’s hand as well. Out of the corner of his eye, Mike saw Harvey twitch very slightly as she touched him. Alpha protectiveness kicking in, even though Mike could tell the doctor was a bonded Omega. Just like he was now, Mike realized with a small smile.

“Mr. Ross, it’s a pleasure. I understand you two met this past Thursday at an OI scheduled interview?”

Harvey confirmed that was correct.

“And your meeting triggered Mr. Ross’s heat cycle?”

Mike and Harvey exchanged a glance before Harvey answered, “Yes.”

Dr. Hobson had caught the look, but she didn’t ask. “And the bonding bite was given…?

“Sunday.” Harvey said at the same time Mike said “Yesterday.”

She noted this in her notebook. “I am just going to need to take a look at your neck, Mr. Ross.”

“Call me Mike, please.” Mike walked over and sat down next to her as she began to pull some equipment out of the large black bag she had brought with her. She pulled on a pair of rubber gloves as Harvey fluttered nervously around them. She measured the diameter of the bite with a pair of strange calipers, and swapped at it with a cotton swab. She then applied some antiseptic ointment. “That should heal up nicely,” she remarked. “Would you like me to cover it?”

Mike looked to Harvey. Harvey shrugged. “It’s up to you, kid.”

Mike looked back to the doctor and shook his head. “No, I think I am good.”

She nodded. “Okay, I am going to leave you with this-“she held up the tube of ointment. “Now, if it becomes red or inflamed, you need to call me.”

Mike nodded.

“Great, now I just have to take some blood from both of you, and we can all be on our way.” She turned to Harvey. “I usually do the Alpha first.”

Harvey rolled up his sleeve and took a seat at the table.

Dr. Hobson spread a white cloth over the table, and then swabbed the crook of his elbow with iodine.

Mike twisted his hands on the couch and watched as the doctor inserted the needle into Harvey’s arm, and took three vials full of his blood.

“Why do you need so much?” Mike asked, mainly just to have something to say.

Dr. Hobson smiled at him. “One vial is used to confirm the bond between you, one is used to compare with the blood that was taken when you registered with is, and the other is just kept at OI as a baseline. All set.” She pulled the needle out of Harvey’s arm and pressed a bandage on it. “Keep pressure here and raise your arm over your head.”

The process was repeated with Mike, Harvey’s hand placed protectively on the back of his neck.

Dr. Hobson packed up her bag. “All right, everything seems to be in order. The confirmation paperwork will get sent you to, but I’m sure that’s just a formality in this in case.” She smiled and shook their hands again. “I’ve left my card on the table. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call. Congratulations.”

After she left, Mike said, “Well, that was relatively painless

Harvey was checking his Blackberry again, “The car’s waiting outside. Ready to go home?” he asked “We’ll swing by your place so you can pick up a few things for now.”

“Home?” Mike asked.

Harvey shrugged. “My condo. It’s nice, and close to my work. If you don’t like it, we can start looking for a place for the two of us.” 

“You’d move for me?”

Harvey stood and drew Mike into his arms. “Your happiness is my highest priority. You deserve to be completely at home in our space. I’ll move anywhere with you.” He paused, and then amended, “As long as it’s in Manhattan.”

Mike laughed and closed his eyes as Harvey kissed his forehead. “Quite the concession.”

Harvey picked up his bag and walked out of the room. “You coming?” he asked, holding out his hand.

Mike considered everything that had changed since he first walked into this room. And all the other changes that were waiting for him outside it. A new life, and a new role. Maybe one he could finally be comfortable in, one that fit all of his jagged edges. He smiled and walked across the threshold. “Yeah, I’m coming.” 

~~~  
 _We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly._  
Sam Keen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ^ Well, I had to find a place for the quote that inspired the title! I know I said I’d dip my toe in, but I think I fell bodily in instead =) As I said before, I already have plans for a short sequel to this and then, who knows? They may be a few one-shots as well from this verse. It’s just been too fun.
> 
> I have also already started _another_ Harvey/Mike Alpha/Omega story, set in an entirely different universe as well. (In this one, Alphas have their own society and social constructs and live in secret among us. Mike has no idea they even exist until…) So stay tuned!
> 
> Thank you all so much again for reading, commenting and giving kudos. It has been amazing!


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